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Clinton family adds a bit of sparkle to South Whidbey’s holiday season

Lois and Jerry Beck stand with 8-year-old Kiki in front of the Christmas lights at their house. This is the 18th year the Beck family has put together the annual Christmas Light Show for guests to drive through. The show is open from 6 to 9 p.m. daily through the end of the year.

The Christmas lights are up and running at Clinton resident Jerry Beck’s home for the holiday season.

Beck’s annual Christmas Light Show is nearing its 18th year of production. Guests will view scenes of children playing, a large family of snowmen, a nativity set with live goats and more during the half-mile drive.

The show is powered from 6 to 9 p.m. daily at 6504 Robin Lane, Clinton. Coming from Highway 525, turn left at the power pole wrapped in lights. For Christmas Eve and Christmas Day the show will have extended hours beginning at dusk and ending later in the evening. On Christmas Day, the lights will stay on until dawn for late travelers. The show runs through Dec. 31.

The show uses 2.45 megawatts of electricity and produces a bill between $400 to $600 each season, according to estimates from Beck.

But providing a show for the average 1,400 guests who drive through makes the tab worth it.

For Beck, it’s a tradition he carried on from his father. He’s always loved Christmas lights ever since his father taught him how to put them up, he said.

Beck started his own light show because he didn’t see many in the community. In the beginning the show included a few thousand lights and has since grown to feature up to 60,000 lights. This year, the show uses between 40,000 to 45,000 lights.

It has since become a family affair as well. Beck’s five-member family spends three weeks setting up the lights before their Thanksgiving opening.

“It’s a family event that we get to do over and over again,” he said.

Once the lights are up and people start driving through, Beck said his family enjoys listening to the excitement of children.

“We like sitting on the back porch and listening to the comments. Younger kids will point at something and talk about the light show,” he said. “They don’t know we’re out there talking about it.”

On occasions when the power happens to fail, the show still goes on thanks to the help of a powerful generator, Beck said.

At the end of the show, a box is located on the driver’s side of the road where donations can be made to the Good Cheer Food Bank.

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